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The practice of law involves many roles: advising clients, researching statutes, following changes in federal law, drafting documents, and on particularly fun days -- being a guest on Wisconsin Public Radio!   This past October I was invited to be a guest on Central Time for a discussion of Swedish Death Cleaning, billed as the next biggest fad to hit the US.  Swedish Death Cleaning is a Scandinavian concept designed to encourage people to review their possessions, doing away with the unneeded and making a plan for the beloved.  The book   The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning: How to Free Yourself and Your Family from a Lifetime of Clutter by Margareta Magnusson hits American book stores January 2, 2018.  My copy is already preorderd, and a more specific review will be appear in my newsletter and here on Navigator in January 2018.  Based on what I've read thus far, I have two things to add.  First, don't wait until you 80s to tackle the c...

Routinely clients state "I want to make it as easy as possible on my loved ones after I am gone.  Should I do a trust instead of a will?"  My answer usually causes their head to cock slightly, not expecting my response. "It's not so much the vehicle or tool of estate planning you choose that makes things easier and less messy, it's the person you nominate to be in charge.  If the person nominated is overwhelmed, unskilled in these types of decisions, or caustic, you'll have a mess whether it's a will or a trust."  And then I see their heads nod, yes, in agreement. "Who will be in charge" becomes a critical question.  My suggestion to clients is to aim for Switzerland: who is neutral, precise, and efficient?  That may be a relative, a close family friend, or possibly an institution like a bank or accounting firm. When attempting to fill this role in your end of life affairs, picture the people you are considering doing the following:...

A significant part of my practice involves drafting testamentary trusts for parents with young children, usually aged 18 or younger.  A testamentary trust is a will that says I leave my probate assets to my spouse, but if my spouse has predeceased, then to a trust for my children.  This type of trust does not exist until both parents are deceased, and is created as part of the probate process.  It is not the same as a living revocable trust, which is created during life to hold assets while you are alive. When creating a testamentary trust parents need to name a primary and secondary trustee. This is the person (or institution) that will invest the funds in the trust, file tax returns, and decide on how the monies are spent until the trust ends.  Which leads to the next question, when does the trust end?  "Most clients write until my youngest living child reaches age 25 or 28" is what I share with my clients.  "Personally, my wills says until my youngest l...

For the past 12 to 18 months, possibly longer, you the Personal Representative in a Wisconsin probate have gathered papers, filed taxes, written checks, emptied the fridge, sold the car, distributed the family photographs, written more checks, and have your signature notarized more times than you can recall.  And now the day is here, the day you file the FINAL papers to close the estate.  The last bill to the lawyer is paid, you have free time in your calendar once again.  Things settle down into a new routine, the routine after the loss of a loved one, the routine after the work of the probate, and it feels like something is missing. You did it -- yet those filed court papers just slide off into an abyss.  Will you get a mailing from the court, some sort of official notice that you completed this marathon of a task? If you are a Personal Representative in a Wisconsin probate the answer is simple, no.  There is no fan fare, no balloon drop, no confetti falling...

Recently I had a chance to sit down with a book that had been on my "to-read" list for some time, The Nest by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney .  A work of fiction, the author weaves a complex story line surrounding four adult siblings and the ripple effect of one siblings reckless actions. The book opens with a scathing accident caused by the eldest Plumb child, unleashing a family drama when the mother uses the family trust, lovingly called The Nest by the family, to pay for medical bills of a victim of the accident.  With promises to repay The Nest by the eldest, the book takes the readers into the world of adult children who have spent and counted on these funds prior to the monies scheduled release, the pending 40th birthday of the youngest Plumb child. From a story point of view, the book is excellent. Complex and vivid characters, unexpected development, and a very nice pace.  However, do not read this book if you want to learn the correct names and functions of ...